Temptation
by Fiction.Writer2019
Summary: Set after we found out Katherine wasn't in the tomb: "We're not talking about Stefan right now, Elena. We're talking about you and me. No one else." "I don't understand, Damon," she cries out in frustration. Damon urges on, "What do you feel?" "I just- I can't...I don't know what you want me to say!" "The truth," Damon whispers before diving in for the kiss he's been waiting for.
1. Chapter 1

**This takes place after they find out Katherine wasn't in the tomb. Anna got her mother out, no other tomb vampires got out, and Bonnie's grandmother did not die. **

**I hope you like this. Review and let me know.**

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Elena's eyes shot open and she's met with a black room. Nothing is moving except for Stefan's chest rising and falling behind her. He doesn't need to technically breathe but it is a force of habit for him.

She blinks a few times, trying to clear her mind from the fog of sleep. If it wasn't Stefan then what woke her from her peaceful sleep?

_Shorty wanna thug. Bottles in a club. Shorty wanna hump. You know I love your touch. Ya lovely lady lumps. _

One person comes to mind as Elena sits up and lets the heavy covers pool around her waist.

**Damon.**

With her eyes finally adjusted to the darkness, Elena chances a glance at Stefan and sees him still lying peacefully on his back. The music Damon is blaring doesn't stir him one bit.

Biting her lip, Elena makes a snap decision and gingerly gets out of bed. She grabs the small, grey robe she brought from her house and slips it over her bare, naked shoulders. Stefan still doesn't stir when she steps on the floorboard that creaks.

She knows that she's risking a lot with her relationship to Stefan when she leaves him to go check on Damon. Stefan had specifically asked her to leave Damon alone due to his vulnerable state, but Damon is her friend...sort of.

She knows that Katherine's betrayal hurt Damon. She wasn't in the tomb like everyone thought and now Stefan is worried that Damon will go back to being the way he was when he originally came back to Mystic Falls.

Elena shudders slightly as she makes her way down the stairs. Just thinking of Damon and how he was when she first met him sends chills through her body.

The music is astronomically louder the closer Elena gets and cautiously, she peers into the parlor. She doesn't know what she was expecting, but finding four half naked, dancing girls covered sporadically in teeth marks didn't exactly cross her mind.

However, Elena can't help it; she lets out a small, disgusted gasp as the girls continue to dance. She looks them over and besides the wounds with blood dripping from them leaking from their bodies, they seem to be happy.

They don't notice her although her eyes connect with them. She sees their eyes are glazed over as if in a trance. It takes Elena only a second to realize that they've been compelled. Absentmindedly, she touches the locket around her neck and breathes a sigh of relief that she still has vervain on her.

Watching for a few more seconds, Elena figures she could blast a horn in the living room and the girls still wouldn't even flinch because of how dazed they are.

"Come join us!" A dark skinned girl shouts over the music as she giggles and smiles at Elena.

"There's always room for one more!" Another one adds.

Elena ignores them and scans the room one more time for Damon. She tries her best to ignore the blood on the carpet. The blood on their legs. The blood on their necks and cleavage. Her stomach churns the longer she's down in the parlor.

She really should have stayed in bed.

Stefan was right. Damon is not in a good frame of mind right now and Elena should not trust him.

Just as she is about to head back upstairs, movement catches her eye from above.

Her mouth goes dry instantly. Standing above her, leaning against the banister so casually, is Damon Salvatore. His elbows are resting on the railing above, his ankles crossed so nonchalantly. Damon's eyes are hooded, to the point where Elena doesn't know if he's really seeing her or not. A bottle of alcohol hangs from his finger tips and she takes into account just how empty it is.

When he brings the bottle of alcohol to his mouth Elena can't help but notice how Damon's dressed. His black dress shirt is torn open, revealing his creamy chest. His pants are riding low on his hips and Elena can distinctly see the hard lines of his abs that lead to his…

_Stop it_, she scolds.

But she's like a deer caught in headlights as his forearms go to rest on the banister again and she sees his shoulders. Weak in the knees, Elena can't stop herself from noticing just how good looking Damon is. She's always known that, but she's never had or wanted the chance to have a sneak peek at him like this.

_Maybe I've never wanted a sneak peek because I knew I wouldn't be able to handle it…_

Shaking herself out of her daze, Elena's eyes stop raking over him and she quickly turns her head so her hair creates a nice brown curtain; shielding her face from his watchful eyes. She doesn't know why a blush coats her cheeks, but it feels as if she's catching him in an intimate moment.

There's a whoosh of air, and before Elena can scamper up the stairs and pretend that she didn't come downstairs, Damon is standing right before her.

He wags his finger, the same finger that is lightly grasping the bottle of booze.

"Ah, ah, ah," he chides lightly.

Elena doesn't have to have supernatural powers to smell the alcohol on his mouth. One whiff from him and it's enough to make her feel light headed. So light headed, that she takes a small step back.

Damon notices this and his lips curl in that arrogant smirk that causes the hair on the back of Elena's neck to stand on end. She thinks this is probably a bad sign, yet, her body is telling her that she's attracted to arrogance.

"You just got to my party. Where do _you_ think you're going?" He purrs.

Damon goes to reach forward and tilt her chin up, but Elena swats his hand away.

"I wouldn't say this is much of a party." In the back of her mind she knows that standing up to Damon might not be the smartest thing to do right now. Stefan warned her that he is prone to lashing out periodically. However, Damon is her friend and right now she doesn't like what she sees. "In fact," Elena's stomach clenches in disgust as she hears the giggling and the girls in the other room. She tells herself it's from the blood and not from the green eyed monster. "It looks more like their death right now."

Damon's smirk drops instantly and the bottle of booze he's holding is now rolling away on the floor, the contents spilling on the expensive hardwood flooring. He takes a step forward and Elena can't read his expression. She takes a step back but he just follows until her back is against the archway.

"I promise," he starts to say but the way he's looking down at her is too intense right now. Elena can feel her heart speed up and she looks away. "Hey," cold fingers cup her face and Damon is holding her between his hands. "I promise they will make it back to their dorm rooms and that they will wake up thinking they blacked out."

"I get that you're hurting," Elena says while her hands rest on his wrists. "But you don't have to lash out by compelling these girls." She yanks his hands off of her and this catches him by surprise. "You're messing with their minds and biting them without their consent. That's wrong, Damon. And the friend I know," she emphasizes her next words, "The friend that I care about, wouldn't do _this_."

She feels a little smug right now, more so than she should be feeling, and in the back of her mind Elena should have realized that Damon wouldn't just drop this, but everyone's allowed false hope sometimes.

Moving past him, she makes it to the stairs again, before he's in front of her. Damon's hard body is right against hers. Not having anywhere to go, Elena struggles for only a second against him as his hands lay palm side down near her head.

She's trapped against him and the look in his eyes does not comfort her in the slightest. He looks as if she's his full course meal.

No longer can she see blue in his eyes, but rather, Damon must be so far gone that his irises are black. Bluish red veins dance across his cheek bones for a second before he gets a grip on himself and they disappear.

"Are you suggesting that there's someone else who would _consent_ to me biting them?"

Damon leans closer so his mouth is right against her ear. With every breath he takes she can feel his warm mouth against her skin.

"I know you're trying to intimidate me, Damon," she tries to scold. But with the way her voice shakes it doesn't do much. _Take a small breath_, she tells herself. This is Damon. He might be pissed off and hurt, but he won't hurt her...she hopes. "I'm your friend. So I'm going to be here for you, and I know you're just trying to push me away because you're not used to having someone be there for you, but I'm not just going to watch you wreck yourself like this. Katherine hurt you and I'm sorry for that."

Damon smirks once more against her. Everything he does with his mouth she can feel against the side of her face. No longer can she just smell the alcohol on him. She also is consumed with his leather and woodsy smell. It's intoxicating if she allows herself to breathe it in.

"Weren't you listening, Elena," the way he says her name is as if he's caressing each letter, "I'm not trying to push you away." His hips lean in closer and she can't move. Damon is all she can see. All she can hear. All she can feel. "I'm trying to keep you here."

Heat explodes in her lower belly and robotically her thighs rub together to create some kind of friction. Damon is too close to have not noticed her movement and this excites him.

Nevertheless, the moment Damon's cool tongue and smooth lips press a wet kiss to her neck, Elena snaps out of it.

"Stop it, Damon," she hisses lowly in case Stefan were to wake up from them. But the chances of Stefan hearing them are slim. If he didn't wake up from the music then he probably wouldn't wake up from them talking. "You're better than this."

He's so close that she can hear him let out a small snarl. "Didn't you get the memo? I'm a vampire, _El-ena_," Damon ridicules. "I am a monster, and monsters don't care. In fact," his tone drops and no longer is he snarling. "Monsters take." Fingers stroke her skin, one hand reaching down and tracing up the side of her thigh.

Damon lets his hand sit low on her hips, playing with the waist band of her silk panties. His other hand is ever so softly trailing down her other side, stopping on the knot of her robe. Although his words and voice are rough, his actions say otherwise.

"Monsters want pain," he pants as his forehead rests against hers and they're nose to nose.

If she weren't wearing her necklace then she would have thought Damon was compelling her.

She hears her robe being untied and Damon's body pushes further against hers. The pain is enough to alert her body that she might be in trouble, but there's a small part of Elena that is wondering where this is going.

His eyes flicker down her body as he takes in her naked torso. How his brother is so stupid to let this vixen walk around the boarding house practically naked and needy is beyond Damon. If Elena was his then she would never leave his bed…unless Damon was with her too.

"Monsters don't care what happens to others."

She really should stop him, but she's frozen to her spot and a slight blush covers her cheeks when she realizes that just his words are turning her on. And if she can sense it, then Damon definitely can with his enhanced abilities.

Fingers slide from her hip to the center of her panties.

"Monsters take what they want," he breathes heavily as Elena gasps from the pressure he's applying. Damon's fingers are rough and hard as he pushes her. Her body responds automatically, something she isn't quite used to. Usually it takes Stefan a good few minutes to have her writhing in need.

"Damon," she does not say stop, although she knows that she should.

Everything about this situation is so wrong and dirty.

Never has she been fucked or fingered outside of a bedroom.

Damon's mouth ghosts over her neck, going towards the shell of her ear. "And now," his fingers push harder and she's ashamed as her hips grind against him. She's drying humping his leg and his hand to get any friction needed to push her over the edge. "For the first time in over a century I don't have a master plan. I'm free to do _whatever_ I want. _Whoever_ I want."

His finger curls and Elena whimpers.

"And right now," Damon nips at her bare collarbone. "I want you to cum. I want you to cum all over my hand and leg and the next time you're with my baby brother, I want you to remember that it was me, _Damon Salvatore_, who got you off when Stefan couldn't."

Heat is building in Elena and her panties are soaked through. His hold on her tightens as her body shakes and shivers in pure bliss. His words should not turn her on, and when Elena thinks back to this night she will be forever ashamed at how his crude language got her off.

She just needs a little more pressure. She's sure of it, but Damon isn't giving it to her yet.

"I can't," she cries. Elena wants to believe that she's telling him she can't cum for him, but they both know that's a lie.

"You need it harder," Damon taunts and his cock presses against her lower belly. Without even seeing it she knows it's large. Moving aside her panties, Damon's fingers finally slip beneath the material and with a harsh pinch to her clit, Elena falls over the edge. She bites his shoulder to keep herself from screaming out too loudly.

Although his words were crude and his want of convincing Elena that he is a monster is high, when she comes down from her orgasm, Damon is surprisingly gentle.

He smoothes her hair back and presses a soft kiss to the inside of her neck.

"Think about this moment the next time little bro is kindly touching you. Think about how you need a little extra roughness to get you over the edge."

He's smug and so conceited that it breaks Elena out of her haze. Hurriedly, and with precise movements, she pushes him back a step and ties her robe with disgust.

"What did you do?" She hisses because she refuses to believe that she just cheated on Stefan with Damon.

That's not like her. She's not Katherine.

And that's all that Damon is looking for right now. He's upset that Katherine isn't in the tomb. He's looking for a replacement. And sure enough, she looks exactly like Katherine.

"I will not be some replacement for you. I am not Katherine," Elena snaps. "I love Stefan. He's my boyfriend and if you come near me again to try to use me as a replacement then I'll be done with you."

Damon's smirk momentarily drops and Elena sees for a split second that he looks somewhat baffled. If it were any other time and any other issue then she would tease him for looking so human right now. It's not common for Damon to look confused.

There's another gust of wind and within a blink of an eye Damon and Stefan go crashing to the floor.

"Stay away from Elena," Stefan hisses as he pins Damon against the wall.

When Damon has enough of Stefan, with a flick of a wrist, he is shoved across the room. Damon adjusts his open shirt and his smirk is firmly planted on his face again.

"If you didn't fall asleep after one round of sex then maybe your lover wouldn't be down here seeking comfort with me."

Stefan growls at Damon's arrogant words and Elena is beet red from the top of her face all the way down her neck. Yes, she and Stefan were together that night, but when they're together she forgets about vampire hearing and how Damon must have heard them.

_Oh God_, she thinks, _they've been together at least five other times in the boarding house. Did Damon hear those times too?_

Stefan growls again before charging and it's vampire against vampire. Both brothers have their fangs out and she tries to keep up as they pin each other to the walls. Pictures shake, walls, crack, and tables break.

"Stay away," Stefan snarls one last time. "Or I will end you. Once and for all."

"You forget Stefan," Damon taunts while picking up a piece of wood that used to be from a table in their entry way. Damon lunges at Stefan and pierces his abdomen with the makeshift stake. "I'm stronger than you. Therefore, I will end you."

Damon lets Stefan drop to his knees with a satisfied grin on his face. His brother groans with pain as he rips the wood out.

"Stefan!" Elena rushes to his side and for a brief second Damon's smile drops. He watches as Elena coddles his brother and checks his wound like a doting girlfriend.

"I'll be fine," Stefan reassures Elena. "It'll heal in a few minutes." Stefan strokes Elena's face and Damon coils with disgust at how soft his brother is. "Are you okay? What were you doing down here?"

"I," she hesitates for a moment and the briefest of hope flitters through Damon's chest. Maybe Elena will confess to Stefan what she let him do to her. "I woke up and needed a glass of water. I'm fine though. Let's go back upstairs."

"Elena," Damon starts but realizes he doesn't' know what to say. He doesn't really have a plan. It's not as if he can say sorry because he isn't. Stefan got what he deserved. He should know not to go around threatening him like that.

"Stay the hell away from us, Damon," Elena demands as she helps Stefan to his feet and Damon is left to watch them walk up the stairs together and go back to Stefan's room.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note-Thank you to everyone that read, reviewed, or liked my story. This is only the beginning and I know that people want Damon and Elena to be together right away, but that's just not in Elena's character right now to jump from Stefan to Damon. I'm sure we all remember the Elena from season 1 and 2 who kept denying her feelings for Damon? I promise that I won't make you wait _that_ long, but it will be a few chapters at least. And now that we have this guilty chapter over with, the fun of Mystic Falls can really start!**

**Review and let me know if I should continue. Thank you!**

* * *

Elena scrubs harshly with the bristle brush. For a brief moment she curses Stefan in her head for only owning a brush that seems to irritate her, but after a second she realizes that her thinking is irrational. She's placing anger towards herself on Stefan and that's not fair to him.

_No, _she thinks to herself as she freezes under the spray of the water, _the guilt she's feeling is towards herself and it's eating her alive_.

Setting the brush down Elena closes her eyes and hangs her head. She doesn't care that the water is starting to turn cold. Elena thinks she deserves it as flashes of the fight run through her mind. Damon had staked Stefan because of her.

She shouldn't have been downstairs. She should have kept her promise to Stefan.

Elena doesn't know when the tears start to flow down her cheeks, but her face is no longer wet from the shower. Wiping the tears away, she mentally kicks herself. She doesn't get to feel sorry in this situation. She's the one who caused this to happen, and so she's not the one who gets to feel pity when she's the one doing the hurting.

"Elena?"

She's pulled out her thoughts by Stefan's soft voice and a knock on the door.

She takes a moment to answer him so he can't hear the tremor in her voice.

Stefan slowly opens the door a crack to poke his head inside.

"You okay? We're going to be late for school."

She doesn't poke her head out of the shower to answer him. Instead, she takes one last breath and puts on her battle face.

She can get through this. She can figure out how to be with Stefan without breaking his heart.

She loves him.

She really does.

"I'm almost done," she answers back effortlessly. "I'll meet you downstairs."

"Sounds good. I'll have breakfast ready."

When the door clicks shut Elena finishes getting ready for the day.

Stefan is what she needs. She was drowning in sorrow before he came to Mystic Falls. He had lifted her spirits. He pushes her to be her best self. Stefan cares for others; he respects others' wishes, and doesn't push too hard. He makes Elena play it safe and she can always count on him to soften any blows that come her way.

_You don't need to be coddled_, a voice in the back of her head says.

* * *

"Our girl is going to turn into a prune if you don't get her out of the shower," Damon can't help but taunt Stefan as his brother walks past him for the fifth time that morning.

Damon's at the stove, preparing breakfast and just trying to keep his hands busy.

He's doing anything he can to get the disgusted look Elena gave him out of his mind from the night before.

And when Damon needs a distraction it either means death for someone or cleaning to calm his OCD tendencies. And since Damon can't kill anyone in Mystic Falls without seeing Elena's brown eyes in the back of his mind, he decided to clean the first floor from top to bottom.

He had sent the girls home like he promised Elena. They should be just waking up in their dorm rooms with a nice head ache from a night of too much drinking. Damon had taken care of the blood and even managed to get the blood stains out of the Persian rugs.

The moment he heard the shower come alive from Stefan's side of the house all of his distractions went out the window. He just knew that Elena was under the spray of water. He could hear her heartbeat from above. It was as if she was calling to him.

His ears picked up the moment she dropped her thin robe to the floor. His mind conjured up what she looked like standing naked, waiting to enter the flow of the water. And his ears didn't miss the way she politely declined Stefan's proposal of a shared shower.

Damon thought this was interesting since she didn't mind being with his brother the night before. But then again, that was before she let him touch her.

His fingers had tingled just thinking about being inside Elena. He could practically smell her juices coating his hand.

The way she came when he pinched her nub had him hard in the pants. And that was when Damon knew that cleaning wasn't going to distract him for long when Elena is naked above him.

"Look," Stefan starts in a tone that lets Damon know that this is going to be the start of a long talk. "I'm just going to come out and ask because you seem to be suspiciously better this morning and you seem to have sent you _guests_ home for the morning."

"You never know Stef," Damon smirks, "I might have just hid the bodies in the garage."

Stefan doesn't appreciate Damon's joke as he watches his brother frown. "Damon, you didn't-"

"Relax, brother, it was a joke."

Damon throws in chopped onions and tomatoes to the scrambled eggs he's making.

"Since when do you eat food in the morning?" Stefan asks him.

"That's what you wanted to talk to me about? Food?" Damon hears the shower finally turn off and he can hear Elena quickly rush to Stefan's room to get changed for the day. "I think you're off on your interrogating game."

Stefan shakes his head slightly and Damon continues to make the food that he knows Elena likes.

What can he say? He might have wanted a distraction from last night to clear his mind but that doesn't mean he'll completely leave Elena alone.

He doesn't think he can.

"I need to know, Damon," Stefan sighs before taking a long pause. When it's clear Damon won't respond to him, Stefan tries again. It's as if he's poking the bear with a very large stick and he's just waiting for Damon to explode. "I need to know what happened last night."

"You came down all macho like," Damon says nonchalantly with his usually cocky attitude. He makes a show of flipping the eggs before sprinkling a dash of cheese on top. "Tried to threaten me, but lo and behold I staked you."

This answer isn't enough for Stefan. "I'm being serious, Damon. I don't want to come off as the jealous boyfriend, but I need to know what you did to Elena."

"And why do you assume it was me that did anything to her?" Damon turns around once he's satisfied the eggs are cooked perfectly. He flutters his eyelashes for extra affect while trying to look innocent enough. "Maybe your girl attacked me? Maybe Elena did a little corrupting herself?"

Stefan's face scrunches up with the ever permanent frown on his face. "Forget it," he brushes it aside. "I knew this was a bad idea."

"For the record Stefan," Damon catches his brother's eye and all humor leaves his voice. "You do sound like a jealous boyfriend." _Three. Two. One._ "Hello, Elena."

Both brothers turn to see the brunette frozen in the doorway. Damon's mouth goes dry as he looks Elena up and down. A warm blush coats Elena's soft cheeks as she pushes a strand of hair behind her ear.

Anyone could cut the tension with a knife if they walked into the kitchen with the two Salvatore brothers and Elena.

"Hey," Elena says meekly and Damon's grip on the rubber spatula tightens as Stefan takes a step forward and presses a kiss to Elena's mouth.

Luckily it's cut short as she turns her head.

_Get a grip, Salvatore_, Damon scolds himself mentally. _She's just a girl._

"Hungry?" Stefan asks softly and Damon rolls his eyes as he plates the scrambled eggs. "We have...uh...crackers...cheese...I think we have oatmeal somewhere. That doesn't go bad, does it?"

While Stefan's busy rummaging through the cabinets Damon smirks. "Eggs?"

"Yes please," she smiles and Damon's breath gets caught in his throat. Surely if he was a human his heart would stop at just the sight of Elena smiling at him like _that_.

Damon passes her the plate and when Elena goes to grab it her hand fumbles the moment she touches his fingers. It's awkward. It's strange.

The feel of her trembling beneath him has Damon's pants tightening.

It's like they're prepubescent again.

Elena rushes to say, "Sorry. I'll just—uh…."

She goes to grab the plate again, but Damon tries to hand it to her again and their hands brush _again_.

"I got it," he assures her.

"No let me," she stutters at the same time. "I-"

"Allow me," Stefan grumbles before walking between the two, grabs the plate and drops it a little too harshly on the counter. "There."

He's back to smiling sweetly at Elena as he holds the chair out for her to sit in.

"Thank you." Although it's a mystery who she's speaking to because she's back to avoiding both sets of eyes as she slowly eats the food.

Awkward.

Damon knows he should just go about his business and leave Elena and Stefan alone, but after the previous night he just can't stay away. There is something between Elena and him and he's bound to make her admit it.

While he's busying himself with washing the dishes at the sink by hand, he listens as Stefan murmurs to Elena lowly, "Let me just get my book bag and then we can leave."

"Don't forget to grab the book you promised Caroline for history class."

"Give me five minutes then," Stefan says. "I have to look for it, but I'll be super quick."

Damon's fingers tighten around the dishrag as he hears Stefan press another kiss to Elena's delectable skin and a whispered "I love you," before disappearing at vampire speed.

Silence.

"You know," Damon starts casually, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say my brother is trying to mark his territory."

"He wouldn't feel the need to do that if you weren't constantly doing what you do," Elena retorts back.

Smirking to himself, the animal within Damon purrs his excitement at hearing Elena's saucier tone. He loves getting her riled up. He finds that when Elena is riled up that's when she's most alive.

He doesn't miss the way Elena sighs quietly, however, and this intrigues him. Turning around, he leans back against the sink and crosses his arms. He wasn't ignorant to the way Elena watched him the night before. She is drawn to him like he is drawn to her.

Elena is resting her head in one hand while her other hand is using her fork to push around the leftovers from breakfast. It's as if she's in a daze as she watches her food crumbs meticulously.

Damon frowns. "Trouble in paradise?"

Elena snaps her head up and glares. "Are you serious?" She's up and whirling around the island counter. Quickly, she turns the water on for sound in the background.

"Do you seriously not remember what happened last night?"

Damon licks his lips as he stares down at Elena. She's so close now that he can smell the vanilla body wash on her and it makes his canines ache.

"Believe me," Damon can't help the eye thing that he does as Elena shifts uncomfortably before him. "I remember _exactly_ what happened."

"Then how can you be so smug and arrogant right now? How can you act like this when what happened yesterday is killing me right now?" Taking a deep breath she looks up at him through her long lashes and big, brown eyes and the emotions Damon sees within catches him off guard. "How can you act like it means nothing?"

Before Damon even knows what he's doing, his hands are on either side of Elena and he has her trapped against the counter. "If you think for one second that I'm acting like last night means nothing then you know nothing," he growls.

Elena panics and looks over Damon's shoulder. She thinks Stefan could be coming down the stairs, but Damon can hear his brother still up in his room searching for the book he promised Caroline.

"We can't do this right now, Damon. I just-" Her hands reach up and run through her hair as if that will clear her mind. "I need-"

"What?" He's on the edge of his seat as he waits for her to tell him what she wants.

Unshed tears linger in her eyes as she looks up at him. Her chest is heaving, her heart practically beating out of her chest, and Damon's just noticing that he's panting just like Elena.

Since when does he lose control like this?

"I love Stefan, Damon." Her words are tearing him apart from the inside out. "And I refuse to be Katherine. I don't want to put brother against brother. So if I have to stop being around you in order to stop hurting you and Stefan then that's what I'll have to do."

Narrowing his eyes, Damon's body goes rigid. His animal does not like what it's hearing right now.

"You're going to stay away?"

"Yes," she whispers. "It's for the best for Stefan and you."

Elena is looking down, not meeting his eyes, and with a softness even Damon didn't realize he could possess, he reaches out and lifts her chin. "And what about you? What's best for you?"

"I..." She's caught in his gaze and for a small moment she wishes she could feel his mouth against hers like the previous night. "I'll be fine."

"Found the book!" Stefan calls out.

Elena pushes Damon's arm out of the way as she races around the counter once again.

When Stefan appears he looks between Elena and Damon and frowns. Neither Elena nor Damon meet his stare as Elena quickly grabs her brown leather jacket and hastily puts it on.

"Ready?" She asks, but she doesn't wait for Stefan to answer as she tries to slip out of the kitchen.

"Hey," Stefan reaches out to stop Elena. "Is everything okay?"

Forcing a smile only Stefan would believe, Elena nods. "It will be. Come on. We don't want to be late."

Watching her walk away under his brother's arm has Damon's hands tightening on the counter he's bracing himself on. Seeing her walk out the door feels as if she's walking out of his life forever.

With one last look, Elena looks back at Damon and says, "Goodbye, Damon."


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: Here's a slightly longer chapter with a lot of Damon and Elena interaction. I hope you enjoy :)**

* * *

"Gawd," Caroline groans from her locker. "We need the weekend here pronto and we need it fast."

"Pronto means fast," Bonnie teases.

The blonde narrows her eyes while applying the latest color of lip gloss. "Don't be such a know-it-all Bon. What I mean is we need a party. It's been way too long since we all let loose."

Elena is tuning in and out of her friends' conversation. She's currently standing at her locker and mindlessly grabbing the next stack of books that she needs for her class. She has history next with Alaric-the new teacher slash vampire hunter who is currently dating her aunt.

However, all she can think about are two blue eyes and the anguish she caused.

"Earth to Elena!" Caroline waves her hand in front of Elena's face and effectively breaks Elena out of her thoughts. "What do you say? Party? This Saturday? I hear the Salvatore brothers have an amazing place to host."

Elena turns to the expecting girl and even though at times Caroline can be annoying, the blonde is smiling so brightly at her, that it's hard for Elena to resist her friend.

"This will give us a reason to dress up and look our hottest," Caroline sings and it's as if she's dangling a piece of meat in front of Elena.

"It's been a while," Elena mumbles thoughtfully.

"Do not let her bully you into partying, Elena," Bonnie admonishes from the side.

Caroline smiles even bigger. "I know you've been dying to wear that black dress with the low cut back since you bought it last year."

"That's true," Elena agrees.

"And I think we could all use a break from reality for a while. Even if it's just one night of mindless drinking and games and stupid teenage boys. What do you say?"

Elena thinks that Caroline sounds pretty awesome right now. It's been a while since she's figuratively let her hair down. The last time she's had fun had been in Georgia...with Damon….and things have been so hectic lately with trying to find Katherine and get the tomb open that Elena could use a little fun in her life again.

"You can even show off Stefan and show him what fun you used to be," Caroline tries again when she doesn't think Elena will agree with her. "Plus, drunken sex is Ah-mazing!"

But unbeknownst to the blonde, dangling Stefan in front of Elena has the opposite effect Caroline was going for. Having Stefan on her arm the whole night will make her feelings for the vampire even more complicated.

_Since when?, _her mind screams at her. _Since I let Damon put his body on mine!_

"Bring me to what?" Stefan comes up behind Elena and wraps his arm around her shoulder. He presses a gentle kiss to the side of her head as Bonnie and Caroline swoon over how much of a gentleman Stefan is being.

"A party," Caroline bursts with excitement. "This Saturday at your place. Since you were on the football it's practically mandatory that you host a party now that the season is officially over and we sucked. No offense."

Stefan looks down at Elena and she smiles shyly up at him. "Do you want me to?" He's checking with her.

Does she? She thought she did, but with Stefan there, and watching her like a hawk, she finds that it's very hard to just relax and enjoy herself. He's not one for letting loose and enjoying the crowds, so maybe she shouldn't be either?

"I think I do want to go to a party," she says the words slowly as she gauges Stefan's reaction. "If you don't want to then that's fine but-"

"No buts," Caroline interjects. "It's decided. We are all going to Stefan's this Saturday."

Just then the warning bell rings and they start to make their way to history with Alaric.

As they enter students are already either in their seats, standing around, or sitting on the desks and waiting for class to start while talking. Alaric is up at the board, writing the topic of the lesson down.

The more Elena thinks about the party the more she starts to become open to the idea. Yes, Stefan makes her want to do better. Yes, sometimes she thinks he puts her on this pedestal that is unobtainable. But should she change herself just because she thinks he would be happier? No way. That's not who Elena was before her parents passed away and that's not someone she wants to keep being.

The bell rings to indicate that class should be starting now. Slipping into her desk Alaric makes eye contact with her briefly and she smiles. It's getting less and less awkward seeing him outside of school with her aunt and then seeing him in school the next day.

"You know," Stefan leans over to her desk and whispers so lowly that it's nearly impossible for others, let alone Elena herself, to hear him, "Not that I don't love parties, but are you sure you want to go?"

This is why she loves Stefan, she reminds herself, he's always checking up with her.

But when she looks at him she can see in his eyes the hesitation. It's not that he's checking up with her. It's as if he's hoping she'll change her answer.

"I'm sure," she whispers back.

"Okay class," Alaric starts. "Once attendance is done we can start where we left off on Friday-talking about the early 1800s and then moving onto the American Civil War later this week." Adding under his breath but loud enough for the class to hear, he adds, "I figured we should probably talk about that war since this is your American History class."

A few chuckles are heard and Elena turns back to her notes before Stefan can press her further for information.

"You know," Alaric starts, but is instantly stopped by the figure standing in his doorway. "Can I help you?" Alaric asks sharply, but nothing is said. There's silence and it makes Elena's skin crawl.

Black, short hair clumsily hangs over a furrowed, wild face. Piercing brown eyes, set rooted within their sockets, watch meticulously over the classroom-as if he's looking for someone. Several moles are spread delicately across his forehead and leaves a tormenting memory of his reckless luck.

This is the face of Caden Hanshaw, a true tormentor among Phantom Shadows. He stands alluringly among others, despite his skinny frame.

There's something puzzling about him, and the moment his eyes snap to Elena's, he walks to the center of the room at the front.

Dropping the black cloak that was tied around his neck, his skin starts to blister and burn bright red.

Students in the front row jump from their seats as they stumble to the back of the room.

Someone, probably Stefan, lays a hand on Elena to try to get her to move, but she doesn't budge as she watches this creature's skin burn right off the bone.

Slowly, his thin, boney finger points straight at Elena and he starts to speak with his gravelly voice.

"_As soon as the sky burns with fire, a marked child shall cause a time of war and an end to our suffering. She'll set us free._"

"Wait!" Elena calls out to him, but Stefan pulls her back and shields her from the creature's fate.

Turning to the window, the man rejoices as the sun hits him fully and his body turns to ash in front of the class' eyes.

Girls can be heard screaming and students rush for the door to leave as the smell of burnt flesh coats the classroom.

Stefan ushers Elena out as she cranes her neck to see the pile of ash that is left behind, but something shiny catches her eye in the middle of the floor.

"Stefan, wait," she nearly pleads while pulling herself away.

"What the hell was that?!" She hears Caroline in the background as Bonnie tries to calm her friend.

By now all students are out of the classroom. Alaric is the only one left as he made sure to get all students out first.

Elena sees her teacher bend down to pick up the piece of metal she saw.

"What is it?" She asks.

It's some kind of medallion on a silver chain. It must have been around this man's neck before he burned.

Alaric holds it up to the light and Elena watches it twirl in the air.

"I'm not certain, but I think I've seen this somewhere."

On the chain a great shield with a symmetrical sharp, inwards curving cornered top and a symmetrical droplet shaped bottom is supported by a swan and a ram. All of which rests on a mountainous landscape.

A grand crown, or coronet, rests atop the shield, it's a crown of broad times, it has a velvet cap and rows of various gems decorate the outer sides.

A graceful ribbon adorns the crest and reads: "Phantom Shadows".

"Come on," Stefan says, "We need to go. I heard Caroline call her mom and the Sheriff will be here soon." Stefan puts his hand out for Alaric. "Mr. Saltzman, we can take that."

Alaric looks from Stefan's hand to Elena. Sighing, Alaric puts it in his pocket. "If you don't mind-I think I'm going to keep it for now." Narrowing his eyes slightly, Alaric adds, "I still don't trust vampires that much."

Understanding why, Elena can accept that and Stefan has no choice but to be okay with it.

* * *

"I understand, Liz," Damon calmly says into his phone, even though the last thing he wants to be is calm. But he has to keep it together because if he doesn't then no one in this town would be able to protect it. Not when his brother is in denial mode and can't accept the fact that Mystic Falls is a death trap for anyone living in it and not when the police department still thinks that humans can fight vampires and the supernatural.

"It's getting harder and harder to convince Mystic Falls that all of these occurrences are animal attack related. How do you even explain to sixteen and seventeen year olds that the reason why a man burst into flames before their eyes is because of rabies?"

Damon rolls his eyes at the stupid cover story, but nonetheless obliges Liz. "I'm sure the students are just happy this ordeal is over with." Damon spots the brunette he's been waiting for across the room. "I have to go Liz. I'll let you know if I find anything else out."

He doesn't wait for her response as he slides his cell phone away and he downs his drink of bourbon in one mouthful.

Elena looks stunning as ever as she walks into The Grill. Damon watches her look back and forth for her friend that supposedly text her that there was an emergency.

He knows it wasn't the best thing he could have done, but taking Caroline's phone while she was busy in the bathroom was a lot easier than trying to go to Elena's house, convince her aunt to let him in, and then convince Elena to talk to him.

The dress Elena chose to wear that day covers her shoulders only barely with two spaghetti straps and flows down into a beautiful draped neckline. It's a relaxed fit which removes the focus from her breasts, but without making it look sloppy.

Her arms have been covered to only just below her shoulders. Which is a good thing too, her silky skin isn't something you want to cover up.

The dress' waist is thin, but it's a loose fit. A cloth ribbon has been wrapped around her and is tied on one side. Below the waist the dress fits snug around her and has a tulip style. The dress reaches to just above her knees and is the same length all around.

She's wearing ballerina flats, gorgeous on their own, an ideal match in combination with the dress. To top it all off she's wearing an ornate necklace and several lavish bracelets.

She looks delectable and she's all his for the next two hours or so.

He hears her sigh as she takes a seat at the bar. Taking that as his cue, he sidles up next to her.

"Hello," he says lowly. "Don't tell me Saint Stefan is standing you up."

Maybe talking about his brother isn't the best route and he decides to try to avoid him the best he can.

His animal within purrs with satisfaction the moment Elena sticks her nose in the air and turns away from him.

"You know very well that Stefan is at Duke with Alaric collecting Alaric's late wife's research."

Damon takes the open seat next to Elena and he doesn't miss the way she looks around The Grill once more for her missing friend.

Nor does he miss the way her body responds to his being this close.

It's been three days since he's last seen her at the boarding house and it's nearly driving him mad.

He spent the first day cleaning all the spare bedrooms on the second floor. When that barely took any time at all he spent the next day trying to figure out who Phantom Shadows are and what they want. And by the third day he become stark mad.

Elena's like a drug that he can't resist and ever since he tasted her he wants more.

"So while the cat's away the mice can play," he taunts lightly.

Elena shrivels away with disgust and he frowns as Elena hops off the seat to leave.

"Jesus," she mutters under her breath. "Where the hell is Caroline?"

Smirking, Damon says, "She's not here."

Turning ever so slowly, Elena looks at him. "What do you mean she's not here? She text me saying that she needed to talk to me about something urgent."

Damon almost feels guilty, but not quite, as he waggles Caroline's pink phone in front of Elena's face. "Busted," he whispers as if it's some big secret he stole Caroline's phone for the time being.

"You have got to be kidding me," Elena snarls as she tries to get Caroline's phone back.

Damon holds it out of her reach but commends her on effort. "Nice try, but you get your friend's phone back if you have a drink with me."

"I'm underage, Damon," she deadpans.

"Compulsion, Elena," he reminds her in the same tone.

"No." She practically stomps her foot. "This isn't happening. You and me? We aren't friends anymore. You don't get to just do this, Damon."

"One drink." He knows he is pleading, and he hopes she can see the sincerity in his eyes as he looks down upon her. "One drink and then I promise to give you blondie's phone back and you can go back to your very boring life. One drink...please?"

One brief pause and that's all the hesitation Damon needs to see in her eyes to know that there's still hope for them.

"No compelling the bartender for drinks," she warns. "I have school tomorrow and I don't need to be hung over."

"Deal." He puts his hand out for her to shake, but she brushes past him and makes her way to one of the empty booths in the back.

Damon watches her hips sway exquisitely before following her.

It isn't long before a waitress comes and brings them drinks.

"One double shot of bourbon, a diet coke, and a rum and coke. Enjoy."

Elena narrows her eyes at the three drinks. "You ordered without me...and with compulsion. Why am I not surprised you didn't listen to me?"

"This was before you told me no compulsion."

"And you just happened to know that I would stay for a drink?"

"I can be quite _persuasive_." Damon watches as she hesitates and then takes the coke and rum instead of the diet. "I thought you weren't drinking?"

"Well I figured we can't let a perfectly good drink go to waste just because you were an ass and used compulsion," she retorts. "Plus I can handle more than one drink. You've seen me before."

Memories of driving to Georgia flash through Damon's mind and he remembers seeing the girl as if for the first time. He had wondered what Stefan did right to have such a beautiful girl wanting him.

Smirking, Damon takes a drink of his own. "You never did tell me how someone of your size could down so many shots without falling to the floor."

Elena rolls her eyes as a warm blush coats her cheeks. "It wasn't that many shots," she mumbles humbly. "But if you must know, I used to be more fun. Just like Caroline said that one time you guys came over for dinner, before my parents died I used to have a life outside of the supernatural world."

Knowing that it was mostly his doing on why Elena was dragged into the supernatural messes as of lately, he frowns slightly. "You could still have that life if you wanted it."

"But wouldn't that make their deaths feel meaningless; if I just moved on with my life and returned back to the girl I used to be before my parents?"

"I don't think you can ever be the girl you used to be before their passing."

Elena frowns. "Gee, thanks Damon."

"Hear me out," he requests. "The girl you used to be is gone. The moment her car went over the bridge and her world shattered is figuratively dead. Then you became this brooding girl who is way too similar to my brooding brother. You were in a healing stage, trying to reconfigure your life after something monumental happened. And now, for lack of a better term, you're ready to shed your cocoon and become a butterfly. You're ready to spread your wings."

"You aren't going back to the girl you used to be, but you no longer have to shut yourself off from the rest of the world. You're ready to smile again and laugh again and have fun again. And that's okay. And the reason why it's okay is because you won't ever forget your parents. You'll always remember them. And I bet they wouldn't want you to live like this-they wouldn't want you to live in mourning."

Damon watches Elena finish her drink with narrowed eyes. When she's done he's ready to hear her bolt. This isn't the direction he wanted their conversation to go.

"I need another drink," she declares and this definitely wasn't what he was expecting.

"Your wish is my command."

He calls over the waitress and they also place an order for food. Elena wrinkles her nose at the mention of a pickle coming on the side but Damon reassures her that he will eat the damn pickles if she hates them so much.

When Elena doesn't say anything for a minute Damon takes a chance to look at her.

The way he can see her slim neck, naked collarbone, and hear the blood rushing through her veins has him hard in his seat. For the first time in a while Damon's glad that he's sitting and not sporting a raging hard on in public.

"Are you afraid?" Elena asks curiously. "Stefan didn't tell me much, but he said that he's heard of Phantom Shadows. He thought they were myths, but if they aren't myths and the person who killed himself at school on Monday really is a part of that vampire organization then something evil is coming to Mystic Falls...for me."

Damon's hands tighten on the table and it's not until Elena's small, delicate hand reaches out to soothe him does he realize that the table is slightly cracking under his pressure.

"I promise you, Elena, nothing is going to happen to you." The moment Caden Hanshaw singled Elena out was the moment he made his worse mistake. Damon isn't going to let anything happen to Elena. "The moment I'm afraid is when you should be too, but I'm cool as a cucumber right now."

Elena snorts and takes her hand back. "The fact that you nearly broke the table is really reassuring."

"Is that a snarky comment Ms. Gilbert?" Damon admonishes with a smile. "Color me impressed."

Damon's answer has seemed to placate her for now though as Elena changes the subject. "What you should be afraid of is Caroline. Not only do you have her phone, but you have her planning a party at the boarding house for this Saturday night. She doesn't just do small parties."

"I have to talk to little bro about just letting anyone throw a party in our house. I draw the line when I start getting texts asking how big my fireplace is."

Elena sympathizes a little because she knows how Caroline can be so invested in something. "It'll pass after a few days. Care just needs time to get all her questions out and then she'll be so busy decorating and organizing that she'll forget all about you. Not to mention she kind of needs this right now."

After Monday's debacle in the classroom is was impossible to hide the truth from Caroline about the supernatural world. Instead of compelling her, Elena and Bonnie made Stefan promise that they would explain what was truly going on instead.

"She wouldn't be so worked up and spooked about vampires if we could have just compelled her. My compulsion works wonders on people and Caroline was very _receptive_ to it before."

"Eew," Elena's face scrunches up before she frowns at him again. "I'm done with the compulsion Damon. I think that's the worst trait a vampire has."

"Really? You don't think you could ever find a use for compulsion?" When he sees her hesitate he knows that she's lying. "Come on, spill. If you had compulsion, what would you use it for?"

"I wouldn't," she denies.

"Don't lie Elena. You're many things, but a liar you are not. So fess up."

"Fine," she chuckles at how eager he sounds. "Maybe I've thought about it once or twice and it was only in desperate times that I wished I had it."

"I'm waiting…" He's egging her on.

"Well it was about a month ago when Jenna brought home this really awesome strawberry rhubarb pie. Jeremy ate the last two pieces," Elena scoffs, "And I really _love _that pie. So if I had compulsion, I would compel whoever made that pie to always bake me a pie so I would never run out."

Damon quirks an eye brow. While holding in a laugh, he asks, "A pie? That's what you would waste compulsion on?"

"Well I can't bake and Jenna tries but I seriously wouldn't ever eat the food if she gives it to you. I mean, you saw that one time at family night how she'd rather drink a bottle of wine than cook." Elena looks at him and huffs when she realizes that he's making fun of her. "What? It's a really good pie."

"Oh, I'm sure."

"It is!"

"I bet."

"Whatever," she scoffs playfully and it warms Damon's chest that he can make someone so pure and innocent like Elena laugh like this. "Next time we get the pie I'll _maybe_ let you try some and then you can decide if it's good or not."

"Honey, I've been around for nearly a hundred and seventy years. I've had over hundreds of pies and there's only one place that I would go to: Prime Dough."

"Prime Dough in Millfield," Elena says at the same time as Damon. "Yes," Elena cheers excitedly. "They have the flakiest, sweetest pie crusts ever."

"Maybe I underestimated your taste in things, Gilbert," Damon concedes.

Her eyes sparkle and Damon knows in that instant that he would do anything to get her to look at him that way again.

"Why Mr. Salvatore," she sings, "Is that a compliment?"

"Well I was raised as a southern gentleman."

Elena darts her small, pink tongue out to wet her bottom lip as her eyes stray across Damon's face. The temperature in the air seems to have risen around them as her cheeks flush and her heart rate picks up. He can hear the blood rushing through her veins as she stares at him with a wanton look.

"I bet," she swallows the lump in the back of her throat as her thighs rub together.

"Elena?"

"Yeah?"

Heat blooms in the pit of her stomach as Damon looks at her like she's a damn cold glass of water and he's been thirsty for all his life. She should tell him to stop looking at her like that. She has a boyfriend. But the way Damon says her name has her on the edge of her seat, anticipating what he's about to say.

"We should go. Now."

His voice is a growl, so low in his throat that she's ashamed it makes her tremble and want him even more. His words are not a question nor are they gentle. It's a demand to get her out of public and into his very private bedroom.

Damon's animal wants her. He wants to claim Elena on every surface. He wants to touch her in ways that no one has touched her before. His animal wants to mark her so every man and woman in the vicinity knows that she's taken. A month or two ago, Damon would have been afraid to tell Elena this. She wasn't ready to hear it. But the more he gets to know her, the more he understands that she might just want that.

She can handle a hell of a lot and he's determined to push her boundaries.

"Hey Elena!" Caroline's voice breaks their bubble and Damon inwardly curses. "Damon," Caroline scoffs.

"Hey," Elena greets meekly. "We were just…"

"Oh I know what you were just doing," Caroline says knowingly. There's disapproval in her tone and Damon snarls at the blonde.

"What do you want, blondie?"

"I just came looking for my phone."

"There," Damon tosses it to her. "Now leave."

"Damon!" Elena hisses.

"Elena," Damon says right back.

"She has a boyfriend, you know," Caroline cuts in again. "A very nice, friendly, non murderous boyfriend who doesn't use people like you used me."

"You're point, Caroline?" Damon seethes.

"My point being that Elena doesn't date monsters like you. Come on Elena," Caroline latches onto Elena and pulls her away from Damon.

He shouldn't be this angry when the blonde takes Elena. He shouldn't even be that hurt as Elena walks away with her friend and doesn't look back. However, he can't stop his feelings. Caroline has no idea just how wrong she is.

He and Elena will be together. They have to be. There is no way that they have this much chemistry without a chance at a relationship.

He just has to get Elena to finally admit that it might not always be Stefan.


	4. Chapter 4

**I hope you enjoy! Let me know what you think :)**

* * *

Elena closes her car door behind herself and waits for Bonnie and Jeremy to do the same before she locks it.

"Keys," Bonnie holds out her hand and waits for Elena to give them over.

"I'm not going to drink that much, Bon," Elena says.

Bonnie shakes her head. "It doesn't matter, okay? I'm not drinking tonight and so I promised Caroline and you that I would take your keys so you two don't make any stupid mistakes. Now keys or else I'm not going in."

Elena sighs heavily before giving Bonnie her keys.

"Are we ready now," Jeremy asks impatiently.

"Relax," Elena teases. "It's only nine o'clock. I bet Anna isn't even here yet."

Jeremy blushes slightly, but before Bonnie or Elena can tease him further, he rolls his eyes and starts walking ahead of them.

The driveway is packed and people have started parking on the lawn. The girls were lucky to get a spot near the end of the driveway; at least a half a mile walk to the front door. Elena scans the yard and winces as she sees cars leaving tracks on the once perfect front yard.

"Damon's not going to be happy," Elena motions for Bonnie to see the tracks.

Bonnie snorts. "He'll probably track down the person tomorrow and kill them."

Elena nearly growls at Bonnie. She doesn't know where that came from, but she's defending Damon. "Cut him some slack Bonnie. He wouldn't do that."

Bonnie crosses her arms and looks at Elena expectantly. "Really?"

"Yes, really," Elena sighs. "At least he wouldn't do that now. Maybe before, but not now."

_Not now that I've let him finger fuck me_, Elena thinks bitterly to herself.

"Geez," Bonnie holds her hands up in surrender. "Sorry."

Elena puts this conversation behind her and smiles at her friend. Bonnie's looking good that night in tight jeans, boots, and a tank top. They both are dressed for a party and that's what they're going to do.

Putting her arm around Bonnie's they finish their walk up to the Salvatore boarding house front door.

"I forgive you," Elena sings. "You ready for a night full of fun?"

"You know," Bonnie smiles as the music can be heard from outside of the house, "It's been a while since I heard you use the word fun. I kind of like it."

Elena smirks back, "Me too."

* * *

Damon weaves his way through the hallway, dodging teenagers left and right. Glaring, he sees a brunette taking one of his bourbon bottles that Damon specifically put under the drink cart to keep away from the thirsty teenagers.

"Mine," Damon growls while plucking the bottle from her hands and then keeps walking-not even giving the girl and her giggling friends a second glance.

Where is Caroline? He thinks to himself.

There seems to be 200 students there, packed in the parlor, kitchen, dining room, and front lawn but yet not one of the students is the girl he wants to see. Not one of the girls is the brunette with the long legs and golden skin that he's been yearning to taste for a week now.

So if he can't find Elena then he has to find the blonde before he loses his cool and snaps someone's neck.

Seeing that someone left their glass of soda and cheap alcohol on a hundred year old table without a coaster Damon let's out another low growl. He snatches the cup, grabs onto the first body he sees, and compels the young boy.

"Throw out this cup. And if you see another glass left on my tables without a coaster, then you have to throw them away."

"If I see unattended cups on tables then I will throw them away," the boy repeats back mindlessly.

"Good," Damon claps him on the back before searching the crowd once more.

It's been nearly an hour now and no sign of Elena.

Where the hell is she?

Spotting two students going upstairs, it's easy to see why they're going up, and this annoys Damon also. He specifically told Caroline that no one is allowed in his room or any of the guest rooms upstairs. If for whatever reason people feel the need to get it on then they can do that in their cars; not his house. He doesn't run a love shack.

"Jesus Christ," he mumbles before heading up the stairs to get the two teenagers down.

Maybe if he's lucky he can get in a quick snack before anyone else comes up the stairs.

Once Damon gets upstairs and is further away from the speakers that Tyler Lockwood brought over, he can use his vampire hearing without going deaf. He hears a giggling girl and a drunken boy on his side of the house.

Making his way to his wing, Damon spots the boy pushing the girl up against his bedroom door.

The girl notices him first and looks shocked that anyone else is up there with them.

"John," she mumbles. The boy either doesn't hear or chooses not to hear. "John. Stop. Stop. Someone else is here."

John pulls away and glares at Damon. "Who the hell are you?"

Damon smirks before speeding over to the couple and rejoices in the fact that he can smell fear on their skin.

He compels them to be quiet, and he takes what he wants from them. When he's had his fill he adjusts the scarf on the girl's neck and tells her not to take it off for anyone that night and he bitterly gives John a little drop of his blood to conceal the marks on his neck.

He dislikes giving his own blood out unless it's absolutely necessary.

Once he sends them on their way, he turns back around and is surprised to see Caroline there.

Smiling casually, Damon says coolly, "Just the blonde I was looking for."

"I drink vervain now, Damon," she hisses.

It takes Damon a minute to realize she thinks he wants to feed from here. "No," he growls. "Been there, done that. Your blood isn't that good, sweet cheeks."

Caroline crosses her arms defensively. "You're a jerk," she yells. "Here I am, all nice, coming to check to make sure no one was up here like I promised, and I catch you just feeding on whoever you damn well please. You're horrible!"

To make her point Caroline stomps her foot and starts to walk away. "And to think Elena believes you actually have changed."

Damon speeds over to her and matches her strides. "Let's get one thing straight here Blondie, I'm doing you a favor. I didn't need to let you use my house. So maybe you should be more considerate; especially given who you're talking too."

Caroline rolls her eyes and Damon clenches his fists. Is this girl serious? He could break her like a twig within a nanosecond. And to top it all off, she actually stops walking once they're near the top of the stairs and laughs.

"Oh please," she keeps giggling. "I might still believe that you're still a monster, but you and I both know that you won't hurt a hair on my head."

Damon feels a crack in his hand and realizes that he's clenching his hands into fists so hard that he's actually breaking his knuckles. Instead, he towers over Caroline as the party below them continues on. He has to remind himself that they're in the balcony party of the house, which looks down into the parlor. Everyone can see them from there so he can't use his vampire abilities as much as he would like.

"And why not?" Damon growls lowly.

Caroline smirks as if she's won. "Because if you hurt me then Elena will never forgive you. And you and I both know that Elena has you tied around her finger whether she admits it or not."

Caroline starts to leave Damon, but he latches onto her upper arm and twirls her back around. His eyes narrow as Caroline looks shocked for a moment that he would have the audacity to touch her like this.

"Go to hell, Caroline," he snarls. "If you think I'm just going to let you go around and-"

"_Hello Elena."_

"_Hey Stefan."_

"And what, Damon?" Caroline calls his attention back to her, but Damon's eyes stray away from the blonde and look over the landing.

His grip on Caroline slackens a bit as he sees Elena Gilbert at his front door.

She and Bonnie are being greeted by Stefan who slowly places a kiss on Elena's lips.

"_You look pretty tonight. New dress?"_ His brother asks.

"Oh I get it," Caroline sings while yanking her arm free of Damon's grasp. She looks over the landing with Damon and spots Elena and Stefan. "Elena's here."

"_Kind of. I bought it last year and just never had the chance to wear it until now."_

"_Well you look good."_ Damon snorts. Good? She looks good?! His brother really is an idiot if he thinks Elena looks good. No...instead, she looks gorgeous and beautiful and sexy and the only word Stefan can use is good. _"Can I go get you a drink? Diet coke okay?"_

"_I was thinking more of a rum and coke if that's okay?"_

"_Sure. Coming right up."_

Damon licks his lips, not paying attention if Caroline is still by him or not, as he devours Elena from above.

The dress she is wearing leaves her shoulders bare except for two scraps of thin lace that are spaghettis straps and flows down her chest into a delicate sweetheart neckline. The dress isn't fully skin tight, however, it clings to her body and he can see the swell of her breast. The material is thin, even he can see that from far away and it's as if she's taunting him.

Her arms are bare and he can enjoy her silky, smooth skin again while the back of her dress is non-existent. He watches further as she greets people from her class and sees the quarterback touch Elena's bare back as if he has a right.

Damon will gladly cut off anyone's hands who dare to touch her.

The dress' waist is thin, but it fits nicely around her curvy hips. It's left simple, elegant, and undecorated, creating a look that flows from top to bottom. Below the waist the dress twirls around her body until it stops mid thigh.

He sees her turn again and growls lowly as the back of her dress isn't skin tight and is draped loosely over her. The dress is so low on her in the back that Damon claws at the banister when he sees Stefan's hand rest possessively on her.

"They really do make a great couple," Caroline sighs blissfully. "Don't you think?"

"Fuck off," he hisses before leaving the blonde alone. "And don't let anyone else come up here. You might think Elena has me twisted around her finger, but I will kill the next person. Got it?"

Caroline hesitates but then nods her head in acknowledgement.

* * *

Elena sinks the white, ping pong ball into the last cup across from her and the people around her cheer.

"Great shot, Gilbert," Tyler commends as he offers Elena a high five.

She gracefully accepts his offer as the two people across from them lose and drink the last cup in beer pong.

"Another round?" Tyler asks.

Before Elena accepts being his partner again, she looks around the crowd and sees Stefan standing there with a smile.

It's been two hours and she's hardly even talked to him. She's starting to feel guilty and she doesn't want him to think she's purposefully ignoring him.

"I'm going to go hang with Stefan for now. But Bonnie will take my place, right?" She pulls Bonnie to her side and hands over the second ping pong ball she was holding.

"Sounds good," Tyler says before starting to explain to Bonnie the rules.

Making her way over to Stefan she smiles. "Hey." It's a lame greeting, but he doesn't seem to mind.

"Hey Ms. Winner-of-beer-pong. I didn't know I was dating someone so famous," he teases lightly.

She rolls her eyes playfully. "Well if you would have played with me then you could have been a winner also."

Stefan makes a face. "Crowd games really aren't my thing."

"And what is your thing?" She sidles closer to him. She puts her arms around his lower hips and stares up into his green eyes.

Instead of answering he asks, "How much have you had to drink?"

Elena thinks for a moment. "The first drink you brought me, then another one from Caroline," the blondes drink was much stronger than Stefan's, "And then the three drinks of beer from the game just now."

"So maybe we should get you some water?"

Elena giggles until she realizes that he's not actually joking. "I'm not drunk. My tolerance is _way_ up here."

Just saying the words makes her think of Georgia and how her body responded to Damon kissing Brie. The jealousy monster wants to show itself, but Elena squashes those feelings. She has no reason to be jealous over something that happened months ago and to someone who isn't her boyfriend.

"You know," Stefan pulls Elena closer and nothing happens. Her body isn't on fire. Her breathing is normal. His fingers don't scorch her. "I can think of a two person game that takes place somewhere quiet," he suggests lowly.

She knows that he's suggesting sex and it feels as if it's been a while now since they last both enjoyed it. However, the night is still young and Elena was enjoying getting back into the swing of things. She likes seeing people who used to be in her life everyday.

She likes actually talking to Tiki again. She likes being Tyler's beer pong partner. She likes catching up with her advanced English friends group. She misses talking to most of the guys on the football team-the same ones Matt introduced her to when they started dating back in freshman year.

Before Elena has to turn Stefan down for the time being, she feels his phone vibrating.

"Just one second," Stefan says as he fishes his phone out of his front pocket and frowns. "It's Alaric Saltzman. I should probably take this."

"I'll be fine," she promises. "Go."

When Stefan is gone from her side she makes her way into the dining room where a makeshift bar was set up. She glances at her options. There's three different kegs that Elena has no idea how Caroline pulled off, some wine coolers chilling in buckets of ice, and then cheap looking vodka, UV blue, and other cheap drink mixers.

Picking up a random bottle, she sniffs the top of it and regrets it instantly.

"You disappoint me, Elena," Damon's voice is low and seductive as she approaches her from behind. She doesn't have to turn her head to know that he's smirking his cocky smirk, as if he knows that he can have anyone in this room willingly. "I thought you had a better tolerance to alcohol."

She turns on him and is taken back by just how good he looks. The retort she had on the tip of her tongue dies as he gets closer. It's as if she can see every muscle hiding beneath his clothes.

_Do people die this good looking or do vampires turn into such hot people?_, she thinks to herself.

Damon is wearing a charcoal grey v-neck that is tight around his shoulders and upper biceps, but loose around his waist. He's wearing his usual black pants and boots, but she's noticing now more than ever how strong and powerful he looks. She notices Damon nod his head towards her and she's lost in his blue eyes that are partially hidden beneath his messy head look. How does one look as if they just rolled out of bed and still look that good?

Elena should be ashamed of how much she's checking Damon out, but the more the night goes on the harder it is to feel bad.

Does that make her a bad person?

_Yes it does._

Recovering her tongue she holds the bottle out for him. "If you think this crap is so good then you drink it."

Damon gladly takes the bottle from her, just glad that she isn't kicking him out yet, and takes a smell.

"You're right," he concedes. "You know, I have much better drinks in my very, _very_, private room."

"Stefan's here, Damon."

"And if he weren't?" Damon challenges her, taking one small step forward. She doesn't back up which is a good sign. "What would be your excuse then?"

"He's my boyfriend, Damon," she tries again.

Damon narrows his eyes and cocks his head. "Then he's a very stupid boyfriend for leaving you here all alone for anyone to talk to."

"That's all we're doing," she warns. "Nothing else."

"Why Elena?" He feigns hurt and confusion. "What _else_ would we be doing? Don't tell me you're having dirty thoughts about taking advantage of me!"

Elena's eyes widen and she gasps. "Me take advantage of you?" She laughs in his face. "In your dreams. I'm with your brother, Damon."

"You're right," he says lowly as he leans down to her ear and is rewarded by the smell of Elena Gilbert. She smells like sugar and spice and he could devour her whole in one bite. His monster wouldn't mind trying that either. "I do dream about you."

Elena catches her breath and he smiles against her skin.

Breathing hotly against her flushed skin, his hands slowly move forward and lay themselves on her low hips. She fits perfectly in his hands and he never wants to let her go.

"I dream of us on the pool table in the billiards room here, I dream of you in my bed, in my shirt, in my house" he murmurs. Elena's body leans closer to him and she's molded to his body. "I dream of you lying on my dining room table, your supple body spread eagle with nothing on," he thinks for a moment as Elena's breathing has turned into pants of want. "On second thought," he grins, "You would be wearing one thing. A bright red cherry...right here…" His hand ghosts low on her front and slips under her low cut dress to touch her lower lips.

This breaks Elena out of whatever thoughts she was having as she pushes Damon's chest with all the force she can muster.

"What the hell?" She hisses.

Damon would have chuckled at just how worked up she was if he wasn't just as worked up.

His animal growls in his mind. _Take her. Now._

"Elena," he starts but she cuts him off.

"Is this some kind of game to you?" She exclaims. This catches a few people's attentions, however, and Elena notices.

"No, this isn't some game to me," he tells her angrily. Is that why she hasn't been to the boarding house since the night he staked Stefan? Because she was trying to avoid him?

"Well then is this a joke to you? A joke to give you some good laughs because you're trying to ruin your brother's life? I'm just collateral damage along the way?"

"You can't be serious," he snarls.

Now people are definitely looking at them and she cuts him off once more.

"I can't do this here, Damon. I refuse to be a part of some sick, twisted game between you and Stefan." She pushes away from him and mutters one last thing. "I don't want to play your game."

She pushes through people and makes her way to the stairs. In Caroline's text that she sent to everyone, she told everyone that up stairs is off limits. That doesn't include Elena since she practically lives at the boarding house.

Elena is stopped by Matt, Jeremy, and Anna on the stairs, but she reassures them she just needs the bathroom as she tries to hold the tears back.

Jeremy must start to go after her, however, because Elena hears Anna say, "Let her go Jeremy. Sometimes people just need to be alone."

Although Anna kidnapped her at one time, Elena has never been more thankful for the vampire girl's words.

This game with Damon is killing her. When is he just going to leave her alone so she can be with Stefan faithfully? Why does he have to make it so hard to be around? And how sick and twisted is she really for wanting a vampire like Damon?

She's in a stable, happy relationship with Stefan. He keeps her safe and content. It's comfortable for her. But with Damon pushing and prodding her, she's having feelings that she's never had before. He's pushing her boundaries and testing the limits with her. And she's finding that she's becoming uncontrollable around him and she doesn't know if that's a good thing or not.

When she makes it to the top of the stairs, she looks to the right at Stefan's wing. She can't go hiding in Stefan's bedroom after she let Damon touch her between her legs yet again. Stefan doesn't deserve that.

She looks to the left and is faced with Damon's wing of the house. Stefan has always told her to avoid that wing because of Damon.

Not wanting to waste time, she doesn't walk down the fifty feet to Damon's room, however, she does pick a random door on the left side of the house. Closing it she flicks on the light and realizes that she's in a room that is moderate size, floor to ceiling windows covering the one wall across from the door, and bookshelves outlining the other two walls that don't contain the door.

There's a giant mahogany wood desk in front of the windows with a black, cushioned chair behind it.

She's in some kind of office.

In less than seven seconds, Damon slams the door shut behind him and the books rattle in their spots.

Elena whirls around and looks incredulously at him.

Putting on a brave face, and trying to hide the unshed tears on her face, Elena exclaims, "Oh my God, you really don't know when to stop playing."

"**You think this is a game for me!**" He yells and Elena flinches back.

She's seen Damon mad before. When they were in the tomb and saw that Katherine wasn't in there. He yelled and screamed as he threw rocks against the tomb's wall.

But the yelling in the past is nothing compared to the roar he just let out.

His yell puts Elena back into place and for the first time since truly knowing about vampires, Elena is realizing that she's trapped in a room, secluded from everyone, with a very angry, possessive vampire.

Damson storms forward, but Elena flinches back. It's hard maintaining composure when you're not sure what's about to happen.

"Damon, I-"

"No," he yells. "You're done talking!"

He towers over her now and it's as if he's taking up all the oxygen around her. She can't breathe as she looks up into his cold, blue eyes.

She tries again, "Damon, I-"

His hands reach out and grip her upper arms. Not enough to hurt or bruise by any means. In fact, his touch is completely opposite of how he's sounding.

"Didn't you hear me? You're done talking," he growls and Elena's ashamed that the growl of his voice sends shivers down her spine and to her lower belly. "You're done messing with me head. You're done trying to make me feel." He stares down into her round, brown eyes and tries his best to block out what she's doing to him. "You're done staring at me with your beautiful, innocent eyes. Because when I see you; you're the only person I see."

His words shouldn't confuse her, but they do. He can't possibly have real feelings for her. She's the girl his brother loves. That has to be the only reason why Damon is infatuated with her.

Or maybe…

"Damon," she tries once more, "I'm not Katherine. I know that she wasn't in the tomb and that messed with you, but I am not her. Stop thinking that I am."

If Damon was livid before then he's one hundred miles past being angry as he lets go of Elena and grabs onto the first thing he sees. The glass paper weight on his desk. He hurls the weight across the room and it breaks into hundreds of pieces while also making the shelf of books it hit explode into wooden pieces.

Elena takes this opportunity to run to the door because she shouldn't be in the room with Damon like this.

Before she can pull the door open, his hands slam it shut. Damon's chest is molded against her back and he has her trapped against the door. She leans her forehead against the wooden door while trying to control her breathing.

There's a sick part of her that gets off on this thrill. She's trapped with nowhere to go and Damon's monster is ready to play.

She should be more scared of him, but the thing she's scared of the most is how quickly her resolve is breaking under pressure.

"I'm not going to make some speech about how you're not Katherine," he breathes deeply against her skin. His mouth is right against the back of her neck and she can feel the bulge of Damon's groin growing against her backside. "This isn't some stupid romance book where I make a grand speech. But I am going to say this once and for all and that's it: you're not Katherine."

His forehead rests against the back of her neck and the scent of Damon washes over her.

Tears leak down her face as she realizes that her body wants Damon. His touch is electrifying and creating all sorts of feelings throughout her body.

This is what she was looking for with Stefan earlier, but she felt nothing.

"Stefan if right downstairs; probably looking for me," Elena says softly.

"We're not talking about Stefan right now, Elena. We're talking about you and me. No one else."

Damon's rough fingers run up her bare arm and he creates goose bumps on her skin.

She wants him to keep running his hand over her.

"I don't understand, Damon," she cries out in frustration. If he doesn't want to talk about how she has a boyfriend then they shouldn't have anything else to talk about.

Damon urges on, "What do you feel?"

His fingers dance along her exposed collarbone, and then down towards her chest. He pushes aside her dress and touches the soft skin of her breast; making Elena weak in the knees.

"I just-I can't...I don't know what you want me to say!"

Stefan...Katherine...Damon all swirl in her mind as his fingers keep ghosting over her skin, creating a flush in their wake. She can feel him everywhere as she presses against him.

"The truth," Damon whispers before turning her around and diving in for the kiss he's been waiting for.


End file.
